The Office of Instructional Design (OID) released a collection of customized Canvas templates to support the upcoming Canvas LMS transition and to help instructors renew and refresh their existing courses. These templates support the Six Descriptors of Teaching Excellence at OHIO and offer several advantages for instructors interested in enhancing their teaching experience.
Choosing a Template
Ohio Custom Template:Best for most courses
The Ohio Custom Template is our most customizable out-of-the-box template. With examples of pre-built elements, assignments, and instructional language, this template will inspire instructors who are re-thinking their current Blackboard courses for a Canvas flow.
Weekly Course Template:Best for instructors who present weekly learning pathways for students
The Weekly Course Template is best for in-person or online courses that are broad in scope and tend to introduce new topics and skills on a weekly basis. It is a good fit for full-term courses that have an established weekly rhythm built into the schedule, such as having a quiz due each Wednesday, for example.
Module-based Course Template:Best for instructors teaching courses organized by themes or in parts extending beyond a week
A seven-week online course formatted using a Module-based Course Template, for example, might have a two-week introduction, a three-week research component, and a two-week application component, for a total of three modules. If students are expected to interact with materials or assignments for more than one week, a module format is a good fit.
Basic On-site Course Template: Best for instructors teaching on-campus courses that meet frequently and may have frequent schedule changes
Instructors who teach courses that meet frequently in person will find that the Basic On-site Course Template may be easier to manage. The template arranges content categorically rather than chronologically. For example, all videos are listed together while course readings are listed separately. This template is not recommended for online courses or any courses that have a strong online presence.
Importing a Template
Once your course is visible in Canvas, you can easily import one of our OHIO templates from the Canvas Commons by following Canvas Template Import Instructions .
Not sure which template to use? Schedule a Canvas consultation with an OHIO instructional designer to request a template walkthrough and learn how to best use our custom templates to build your upcoming course.
The OHIO Templates are:
- Efficient
- OHIO’s Canvas templates are ready to use out-of-the-box, saving instructors valuable design time. With pre-built elements and structures, instructors can easily copy content, create assignments, and set up discussions. Coordinating templates across a program provides a consistent and cohesive user experience for student cohorts.
- User-Friendly
- OHIO Instructional designers worked with campus partners to create templates with user experience in mind, making them intuitive and easy to navigate for both instructors and students. When used as prescribed, the templates are designed to be accessible to students while adhering to OHIO’s commitment to accessibility standards. The templates were also designed with mobile responsiveness in mind.
- Pedagogically Sound
- OHIO Canvas templates contain pre-built elements and structures that supply the framework for sound instructional and pedagogical design – using these elements ensures that students have the ‘why’ and the ‘what’ they need to know to meet course expectations. The templates are designed to prompt instructors to effectively integrate engagement tools and multimedia elements to enhance student engagement. Many pre-built elements align with standards outlined in OHIO’s adaptation of the OSCQR rubric.
- Sleek and Professional
- Each of OHIO’s Canvas templates has a polished, cohesive appearance, which will enhance the quality and professionalism of the course. Templates have been customized to reflect institutional branding and identity, creating a sense of unity and pride among OHIO Bobcats!
Find information on Canvas workshops, consultations, and drop-in support on the Canvas Transition Page .